Principal Instrumentation & Controls Engineer – Hardware

About Valar Atomics

At Valar Atomics, we're redefining what's possible in energy. Our mission is to make clean, high-temperature nuclear power scalable—unlocking abundant energy for industry, hydrogen, and next-generation manufacturing. We are a team of builders, engineers, and operators who believe nuclear energy should be fast to deploy, factory-made, and built for the real world. Our first pilot plant in Orangeville, Utah will demonstrate how advanced nuclear systems and fuel fabrication can power the future. Joining Valar Atomics means becoming part of a company where autonomy, ownership, and impact exist at every level.

The Team

You will be joining Valar Atomics' Instrumentation, Control & Electrical (IC&E) organization. I&C Hardware Engineers own the physical measurement and control layer field instrumentation and final elements, control panels and I/O architecture, field wiring and network infrastructure, and safety instrumented system hardware, along with the calibration and commissioning practices that keep those systems trustworthy. You will work alongside I&C software, process, electrical, mechanical, and nuclear safety engineers in a hands-on environment where measurement quality and installation integrity directly support production reliability and nuclear safety. As the principal engineer, you will be the discipline's most senior technical voice: the architect of its systems, the final checker of its highest-consequence work, and a standard-setter for the engineers who will build their careers here. The team values technical depth, disciplined documentation, and a safety-first culture.

• •Define and own the I&C hardware architecture and technology roadmap across the reactor program and fuel manufacturing facilities, including instrument platform and protocol strategy, panel and I/O architecture philosophy, safety instrumented system architecture philosophy, and OT network physical infrastructure strategy.
• •Author and own the discipline's design philosophy and basis documents, measurement strategy, redundancy and segregation philosophy, hazardous area design approach, grounding and shielding philosophy, and calibration and maintenance philosophy that constrain and guide all downstream project engineering.
• •Direct measurement technology strategy for first-of-a-kind and severe-service conditions where no proven commercial solution exists, including sponsoring technology trade studies, vendor development programs, prototype and qualification campaigns, and make-or-buy decisions with long-term consequences.
• •Own the discipline's standards program: set the framework and priorities for engineering standards, delegate authorship to staff and senior engineers, and approve standards for release; drive convergence and standardization across projects and sites.
• •Evaluate emerging instrumentation, diagnostics, and OT infrastructure technology; decide what enters the toolkit, what is piloted, and what is excluded, balancing innovation against nuclear quality and long-term supportability.

• •Serve as the discipline design authority: hold final technical approval within I&C hardware for architecture decisions, safety-significant designs, deviations from standards, and concessions; adjudicate technical disputes within the discipline and represent its position in cross-discipline conflicts at program level.
• •Own the technical integrity of safety instrumented system hardware across the fleet, including SIS architecture selection, redundancy and voting philosophy, SIL verification methodology, and approval of safety-significant SIS design changes in accordance with IEC 61511 and IEC 61508.
• •Lead the discipline's engagement in the highest-consequence program reviews: preliminary and critical design reviews, safety case and licensing reviews, HAZOP/LOPA at program level, and readiness reviews for major commissioning and startup milestones.
• •Direct root cause investigations for the most significant failures and events touching instrumentation hardware; approve corrective action strategy and ensure findings are institutionalized in architecture, standards, and training.
• •Personally execute or lead engineering on the small set of problems where the consequence of error or the degree of novelty warrants the discipline's most senior engineer and know which problems those are.

• •Support the nuclear licensing effort as the senior instrumentation hardware voice: contribute to and defend the instrumentation and SIS content of the safety case, support regulatory interactions and audits, and shape the licensing basis so it remains buildable and operable.
• •Represent Valar